Interested in seeing some of Canada’s—and the world’s—most promising artists pushing the musical envelope? The NAC’s Popular Music and Variety fall line-up is eclectic, with captivating artists on the roster.
Afternoon Bike Ride
I remember the moment I fell in love with Afternoon Bike Ride. I was lying in bed listening to my beloved CBC Radio weekend morning show, when this gorgeous, ethereal song titled “Summertime” came on. Needing to find out more, I dug around online and found out they’re a young, up-and-coming group from Montreal, who describe themselves as a lo-fi, indie-pop band.
The versatile trio—Lia, David and Éloi—play multiple instruments and share vocals and programming. In February this year, they released their sophomore album, Glossover, which Exclaim! described as “never the same twice… [with] the regular use of lo-fi sounds and fluttering vintage synths, all blending together into a nostalgic soup.” Catch them on their way up.
Afternoon Bike Ride performs Friday, Oct. 6 at 8:30pm at the NAC’s Fourth Stage. Tickets are just $15.
Anoushka Shankar
Yes, Anoushka Shankar is one of the world’s greatest classical sitar players—if not the best. She has nine Grammy nominations under her belt, and is known to many as daughter of Ravi Shankar and half-sister to Norah Jones.
But what makes her so interesting is her willingness to experiment and push musical boundaries. She’s collaborated with the likes of electronic music composer Gold Panda; electronic duo Thievery Corporation; jazz legend Herbie Hancock; and Bjork’s master engineer, Heba Kadry. She’s also scored and performed on films such as Anna Karenina with Keira Knightley and Mira Nair’s A Suitable Boy.
Her performance in Ottawa is part of a tour through the U.S., Europe and the U.K., featuring four outstanding musicians in their own right. So far, she and her ultra-talented quintet have received five-star reviews, with one critic, who attended her Edinburgh performance this summer, describing her music as “enchanting, evocative adventures.”
Anoushka Shankar performs Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 8pm at the NAC’s Southam Hall. Tickets start at $41.
The Moth Project
Hold onto your hats — you’re about to go on a wild and wonderful ride with Grammy-nominated arranger and multi-instrumentalist Peter Kiesewalter as your guide.
The Moth Project is a live, multimedia show combining mind-blowing macro-photos, slow-mo video and rousing music that explores the mythology of moths and parallel human themes of migration, transformation, life and death. It features Kiesewalter on one side of a large screen, playing keyboard and performing vocals, and on the other, violinist Whitney La Grange, who has played for musical luminaries such as Jon Batiste, Janelle Monáe, Brian Wilson and many more.
The project grew, in part, out of the work by Kiesewalter’s naturalist brother, Toby, to document the hundreds of species of moths that regularly visited their cottage outside of Ottawa. The result is a mesmerizing 75 minutes, calling on all of us to get to know our animal neighbours better.
The Moth Project takes place Wednesday, Oct. 18, at the NAC’s Azrieli Studio. Tickets are $34.
Dominique Fils-Aimé
Dominique Fils-Aimé just keeps getting more and more accolades. She’s already won a Felix for Jazz Album of the Year, a Juno for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year, and has been nominated for the Polaris Music Prize twice. But her fourth album, Our Roots Run Deep, looks like it just may be her best yet, garnering even more awards and praise.
Its early-release single, “My Mind at Ease,” is a percussive meditation that slowly gets under the skin. The title track, “Our Roots Run Deep,” embeds nature sounds and references in a funky, jazzy track. One U.K. critic called the album “an exuberant hymn to the natural world and personal growth, soaked in verdant grooves and ripe melodies.” Fils-Aimé is touring her album this fall in France, Switzerland and cities across Canada.
Dominique Fils-Aimé performs Friday, Oct. 27 at 7:30pm at the NAC’s Babs Asper Theatre. Tickets start at $35.
Jeremy Dutcher
One of the greatest concerts of my life was a small, intimate performance by Jeremy Dutcher held at Ottawa’s Wabano Centre just weeks before the pandemic hit. I’m thrilled he’s back.
Dutcher’s music is hauntingly beautiful, combining an operatic voice and classical piano chops with stunning soundscapes.
His first album, Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa, sung completely in the endangered Wolastoquey language, included century-old recordings of his people, the Wolastoqiyik of the Tobique First Nation in New Brunswick. It won the 2018 Polaris Music Prize and a 2019 Juno Award.
In his sophomore album, Motewolonuwok, Dutcher sings in English for the first time and features strings by Canadian composer and violinist Owen Pallett. His tour includes dates in Brooklyn and Princeton, as well as cities and towns across Canada, including Ottawa. Go. You can thank me later.
Jeremy Dutcher performs Wednesday, Nov. 8 at 7:30pm at the NAC’s Babs Asper Theatre. Tickets start at $41.
Check out the NAC’s website here for more information on the Popular Music and Variety line-up.
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